Tractor Trailer Wheel Chock Regulations

Wheels must be chocked to prevent movement while loading.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations require a driver to set the brake and chock the wheels when a tractor trailer parks for loading or unloading. The Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration ,determine when wheel chocks improve safety.

Wheel Chocks

Loading and unloading trailers can be dangerous.

When a forklift is driven into a trailer backed to a dock, the rear trailer wheels will have chocks placed in front of them. Chocks prevent movement of the trailer away from the edge of the dock.

Trucks and Trailers

Trailers brakes have to be able to hold the vehicle in place.

Trucks made after March 1, 1975 and trailers made after January 1, 1975 that have air brakes must have parking brakes capable of holding the vehicle in place when it is being loaded or unloaded in areas equal to what is found in public streets.

Exceptions

Some trailers operate under different regulations.

Pulpwood trailers, agricultural commodity trailers and heavy hauler trailers are required to only have the brake system required at the time they were made.

References

• Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration: 393.41 Parking Brake System
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration: 1910.178(k)(1)
• United States Department of Labor: OSHA Assistance for the Trucking Industry